Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) Shares Acquired by Advocate Group LLC

Advocate Group LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) by 1.1% during the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 85,078 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 961 shares during the period. Duke Energy accounts for approximately 1.8% of Advocate Group LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 11th biggest holding. Advocate Group LLC’s holdings in Duke Energy were worth $9,809,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC acquired a new stake in Duke Energy during the 1st quarter worth approximately $25,000. Fortitude Family Office LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Duke Energy by 69.6% in the second quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 290 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 119 shares in the last quarter. Riverview Trust Co purchased a new position in Duke Energy during the first quarter worth about $30,000. Olistico Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Duke Energy in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Finally, Cedar Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Duke Energy by 101.2% during the 1st quarter. Cedar Wealth Management LLC now owns 336 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 169 shares in the last quarter. 65.31% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts recently commented on DUK shares. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price objective on shares of Duke Energy from $102.00 to $113.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, August 12th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on Duke Energy from $114.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 25th. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on shares of Duke Energy in a report on Thursday, September 19th. They set a “buy” rating and a $138.00 target price for the company. Scotiabank upped their price target on shares of Duke Energy from $104.00 to $113.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 20th. Finally, Barclays raised their price objective on shares of Duke Energy from $102.00 to $118.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 1st. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $120.15.

Duke Energy Trading Up 1.5 %

DUK stock traded up $1.67 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $112.99. 348,813 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,006,181. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.56, a current ratio of 0.81 and a quick ratio of 0.53. Duke Energy Co. has a fifty-two week low of $85.79 and a fifty-two week high of $118.31. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $114.37 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $105.69. The company has a market capitalization of $87.20 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.98, a PEG ratio of 3.22 and a beta of 0.46.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 6th. The utilities provider reported $1.18 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.02 by $0.16. Duke Energy had a net margin of 14.29% and a return on equity of 9.71%. The firm had revenue of $7.17 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.84 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.91 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 9.0% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts forecast that Duke Energy Co. will post 5.97 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Duke Energy Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Investors of record on Friday, November 15th will be given a dividend of $1.045 per share. This represents a $4.18 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.70%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 15th. Duke Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 105.03%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Duke Energy

In other news, EVP Louis E. Renjel sold 540 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $113.64, for a total value of $61,365.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 19,884 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,259,617.76. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. 0.10% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Duke Energy Company Profile

Duke Energy Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, operates as an energy company in the United States. It operates through two segments: Electric Utilities and Infrastructure (EU&I), and Gas Utilities and Infrastructure (GU&I). The EU&I segment generates, transmits, distributes, and sells electricity in the Carolinas, Florida, and the Midwest.